no one's alone
by wrong light
Summary: All his life tails has been alone. sure he’s got friends but, do they really know him for who he is? what happens when tails finds someone who’s past is so like his that its almost scary? Various couples. rated T for safety
1. Chapter 1

DISCLAMER: I own none of the characters aside from Mal but some day some day I will own them all! MWAHAHAHA!

--------------------------------------------(A.N.)------------------------------------

WL: well folks this is my first ever fic on this site.

Mal: yeah! And your first sonic based story.

WL: that's true but I….

door noises

Mal: hey there Tails your just in time for the story!

Tails: um… ok… two questions who are you, and why are you in the tornado 2?

Mal: well um I… that is to say we..

WL: introductions later story now!

Tails: but you cant just..

WL: all will be explained in story form.

Tails: OK! ok! sheesh!

-----------------------------------------(a case of mistaken identity)-----------------------

egg carrier: Ivo's POV

Through the darkened hall ways of my downed creation I paced. listening to the water dripping in the lower levels, and the wine of machinery in the background. I was trying pinpoint exactly where my latest scheme had gone wrong. I had convinced the god of destruction himself, convinced chaos to join my cause in exchange for helping him get revenge and the chaos emeralds. I had even tricked that idiotic echidna into helping get them. And I had it all, the emeralds, the weapons, and the perfect plan to destroy the city.

As I neared the door to the control room the ship lurched. Stumbling a grabbed on to the bulkhead for support.

"Damn it Zero!" I yelled knowing the newly rebuilt robot couldn't here me. "Could you shake her any harder? I think one of the engines may still be in working order!" shaking my head I punched in the code to the control room. I had ordered that tin can to be careful wile he and kappa worked to get the egg carrier free of the rocks it had smashed into after taking damage in the fight between knuckles and caos6. Sighing I took a seat in the command chair. And looked out through the windows at where the fight had taken place. The newly constructed theta and iota E-100 units where putting the final touches on the blue cylinder of the generator Soon it would be done and all that would be left to repair would be the engines and the patch work on the hull.

The comm System crackled to life. "kkgizzzzit…. This is unit E-111 Lambda re…bwizzk.. as ordered sir" came a deep obviously mechanized voice

"ah Lambda." I said, a smile coming to my face for the first time since I had created the newest batch of e-100s. E-111 had been a stroke of genius he was designed to specialize in stealth and saboteur missions. "What's the damage?" wile Lambda was wonderful ant making things brake down fixing them was beyond him. So I had kept him busy figuring out what still worked on this bucket of bolts and what didn't.

"E-1000 construction lines 1 and 3 are up and running my ..zzzwatt.. lord" came the reply.

"Exhalant get them started and disassemble line 2 then report back" I was practically grinning now. Lambdas reply was simple and to the point.

"Confirmed" he stated and with a click the speaker switched off. This was wonderful wile the E-1000s primitive combat computer was worthless for the repair operation there easily mass-produced design would allow me to get at least some idea of what was going on back on land as well as provide a grunt work security force for the egg carrier. Satisfied with my progress I leaned back in the chair and let my mind wander.

I had hoped that chaos's perfect form might be able to defeat that accursed hedge-pig once and for all and lay waste to station square. But despite what sonic and his friends might believe I'm not stupid. I had a backup plan. Wile Sonic was distracted by his fight with Chaos I had launched a missile at the capital building. I had watched it fly knowing that with its launch I had won there was no way any one could stop it now. It was going to hit the capital building and explode taking with it the whole of the station square government creating a power vacuum for me to fill. That's where it had all started to go wrong the missile was a dud and Sonic's tagalong had beaten me to its landing site. I knew Tails was fast but how did he manage to diffuse the bomb I made to do that he would have to be some kind of genius…. As that thought crossed my mind I remembered something. The sound of a propeller. The glint of sun on steel as a plain moved past. A flash of blue and gold, and a strange marking, two fox tails painted on its side.

I sat up. I had completely forgot about it to caught up in the fact that sonic would soon be calling. "Tails!" I sad aloud in shock. Suddenly it all made since, the plains the plans. I had always wondered how that loud mouth sonic had managed to build them. It hit me then and there, tails must be the mastermind behind the ruination of my plans. Sonic was nothing more then muscle to do the fighting and draw attention away from Tails. Sonic was strong but with out Tails to tell him what to do… "but you've tipped your hand this time fox boy." I said leaning forward. Punching a button on the command consol I raised E-111. " Lambda, report to the command deck at once!" I demanded.

" wwiiirrrooww… sir may I point out that I have not.. bwergg yet finished disassembling production line 2?" he asked in a monotone.

"you can finish pulling apart the ship later." I replied. "right now I've got a job for you…"

---------------------------------(A.N.)--------------------------------

yay! I fixed the spacing so that it works with the English language! i still have need of fan OCs and the question for this chapter is what is my name a reference too?


	2. Chapter 2

DISCLAMER: I own no one but Mal and him only because he lets me

-----------------------------------------------(reviews)---------------------------------------

Mew3692002: OOMG you're the one who wrote Tail's gift! I love that story. I'm glad you liked mine. I was expecting someone to argue with the tails as the brains theory but yeah that's how I've always thought. Also I would be more surprised if anyone actually knew where my name was from its rather obscure.

QuixoticLover: thank you!

---------------------------------------------(A.N.)----------------------------------------------

Tails: That explained absolutely nothing.

WL: And it won't unless you let me finish.

Mal: Quiet Tails! he's getting to our parts!

Tails: Our parts?

WL: Yeah, your in it too.

Tails: So your telling me part of your story from my point of view?

WL: err….. yes?

Tails: That's the stupidest thing I ….

WL: On with the show!

-------------------------------------------(when robots atack)-----------------------------------

field near mystic ruins: Mal's POV

"tweet tweet."

Murmuring I roll over.

"tweet tweet tweet"

with a yawn I sat up and rubbed my eyes. "Stupid birds." I grumped "never know when to keep there beaks shut…"

"TWEET" the little blue noise maker cried.

"yeah, and your not helping your case there." I shot back, rummaging through the pack I had been using as I pillow. I pulled out my glasses and clipped them to my muzzle, and looked around in time to see the bird fly off. I sighed and stood up and started folding up my blanket "look at you Mal," I sad to my self. "twelve years old and already talking to the wiled life." Chuckling at my own joke I slung my pack over my shoulder.

It had been a week since the last town, and my food supply was getting low. All I had left was half a loaf of stale bread and a few bags of dried fruit. It wasn't much but it was enough for another day. That was ok, according to the map I could make it to a place called station square before night fall. I would work odd jobs for a few days and buy some more supplies and then it was on to the next town. I looked at the map again and sighed by the look of it this station square was a city. I didn't like cities the people there are always so rude, never helping anyone out unless they could see some thing in it for them.

Not many Mobians lived in cities so a new one showing up was something that drew attention and not the good kind. In towns and villages people took you for who you were not what you looked like or what you were. But in cities, well… Sighing again I folded the map up and placed it in a pocket. If I wanted to eat tomorrow I had to get moving. Walking the short distance between where I had spent the night and the road. It was more of a trail really, just a dirt path with ditches carved into the ground on ether side by years of car traffic. I stopped and perked my ears as I looked up and down the road. I was looking and listening for any other travelers. I wasn't above hitchhiking and a long walk always goes faster with company. There was no one. I made the short jump to the center of the road and, ears drooping started yet another long walk.

----------------------------I------------------------------

Tails work shop

It was a quiet morning in the mystic ruins. The only sounds where the dull roar of the waterfall in the distance, the intermittent squeak as various parts spun and churned doing what ever it was that they did. The lack of the usual sounds of hammering and whirr of heavy machinery meant that the work shops single resident was probably not in. Damn.

That would make his job harder. Lambda moved towards the rust colored building. His sensors detected no traces of body heat…. Of course the results where somewhat unreliable due to the amount of machines running within. As that thought crossed his system core his targeting computer automatically painted instructions on how to most efficiently stop them from working over his vision. Tempting but no, if Tails was in fact not inside the workshop the broken metal fires and smoke would be a dead giveaway that something was wrong. Pity lambda liked to watch things burn.

If Lambda could have sighed he would have. He activated his radio. "kkkgggiit…. Kappa, I can not ..brrrrizz… confirm the presence of the target, move in and ..zzzwatt. secure the area." Suddenly the surrounding area was filled with the roar of thruster modules as 40 or 50 E-1000 lifted off from the lower levels of the ruins and set down on the small mesa where Tails had set up shop. among them was the larger kappa. Bright orange and taller then most E-100s Kappa was the doctors newest hunt and capture model. He was different from zero in that instead of relying on metal claws to catch his pray he had a metal rod protruding from the underside of each wrist. These bars could be extended to up to 10 feet at will and had enough electricity running through them to knock out a small rhino.

Satisfied that if the fox made a brake for it he would be caught, Lambda walked up to the door and was about to kick it in when he noticed a small piece of paper taped to the door. Reaching out with a clawed hand he pulled it from the door.

_Hey Sonic!_

_Amy said she saw one of the chaos emeralds land in the jungle not too far from here. Convinced knuckles that it was in his best interest to help me find it. His radar should come in handy tracking it down. I should be back before too long. If you want to feel free to hang around tell I get back._

_Tails_

_P.S. you might want to lay low for awhile Amy said something about looking for you in station square._

So Tails was in the jungle was he? Well that sure made things easier.

"What did you find?" Kappa asked moving up beside his brother. Lambda sent him an image of the note.

"take care of ..wwirrszz… this would you?" he said aloud as Kappa studied the note.

"yes of course I will" he stated in a smooth monotone (think Hal from 2001: space odyssey) and turning back to the swat bots "take up a parameter around the mystic jungle, work your way inward if you find anyone matching the target description radio in and move to engage" he marched off still broadcasting orders the E-1000s flying off to take up there assigned positions. Lambda had stopped paying attention let kappa go off on his hunt. Lambda would stay and cover all the bases if Tails escaped Kappa he was sure to return here at some point. Using the tool arm he picked the lock on the workshop door, and slipped inside. If Tails did make it back lambda would be ready, if he didn't…. well maybe he would get to see the place burn anyway.

-------------------------------------(A.N.)--------------------------------

well there's chapter 2I hope you like it and review. I'm not above a little constructive criticism. I'm sorry for the change in prospective but first person doesn't work for Lambda. also i have yet to get anyone to share there OC. the answer too the last question is its the first clue you will ever get the first time you play the level mad space in SA:B. (yes i know Im a geek) and today's question is: in the SatAM series what was Doctor Eggmans first name?


	3. Chapter 3

DISCLAMER: I would tell you that I owned Tails and Knuckles but that would be a lie I don't.

--------------------------------------------(reviews)-----------------------------------------

WL: It would appear that none of you like my story enough to review. This makes me sad. I need the feedback people even if its bad I want it, other wise I wont know what I'm doing wrong. Also with no one responding to my request this fic may go under unless I completely change it around. This is Mal's first appearance inside a fic and if it dies he will be sad. He might cry… DO YOU WANT TO MAKE A 12 YEAR OLD FOX BOY CRY?... No?... I didn't think so.

---------------------------------------------(A.N.)----------------------------------------------

Tails: I thought you said my part was next!

Mal: No, I said that our parts where coming up.

WL: That was Mal's part.

Tails: -- Am I in this at all?

WL: Yes, you're next!

Tails: that's what you said last time!

WL: No last time we said…

Mal: forget it just tell the story.

-------------------------------------------(treasure hunt)--------------------------------------------

mystic jungle: Tails POV 

SPLAT!

A clump of mud hit me in the face and, startled, I dropped the large rock I had been lifting on my foot. "Sonic!" I yelped then slapped my hand to my mouth. it had been weeks since I had done that… not since the missile incident where I had defeated Eggman myself. Blushing slightly I looked around to see if Knuckles had noticed my slip, Knuckles however was being his usual oblivious self and was busy digging up half of the clearing. As I watched he would shovel out a fistful of dirt and fling it carelessly behind him, so that's where the mud came from. Walking over to him a yelled "hey Knuckles!" That got his attention. He stopped digging and looked up at me. "you sure the emerald is here?" he shot one of those 'that was a stupid question' looks at me.

"Positive, the radar is in the red it has to be close by." He said in a voice that people use for talking to a child… which technically he was. I sighed and let it pass.

"Well we've been here for hours and all you've done is flip the fist 2ft. of dirt over." He was staring at me funny and it took me a minute to realize that the left side of my head was still covered in mud. Ears flattened in embarrassment I wiped it off with the back of my hand. I was going to have to shower to get the rest of it out of my fur. I looked back towards Knuckles he seemed to be laughing silently "Oh come on its not that funny" I complaned, shooting a faint glare. "It's your fault anyway." He kept laughing. Rolling my eyes I continued where I had left off. "the emerald only fell a week ago if it had hit with enough force to go into the ground we should have seen a hole" Knuckles seemed to take this into consideration.

"you'd think that wouldn't you?" he asked "but every time I go looking for pieces of the master emerald they seem to end up in the ground or in the side of a cliff with no sign that there was ever a hole there." I raised an eyebrow at him, that was news to me.

"I wonder why they do that…" I mused.

"You know what? I don't know and I don't care as long as I can still find them." Knuckles replied with his usual bluntness. I decided to ignore him.

"Maybe it has something to do with the way the chaos energy produced by the emeralds attracts each other…" my attempt to annoy Knuckles was cut of by a metallic clang followed by a snapping sound.

"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?" Knuckles yelled. The clang sounded again, louder this time.

"Whatever it is, it's getting closer." I replied, and sure enough there was another clang this one from just beyond the tree line. Then a wiring slicing sound an a tree toppled to the ground with a large CRACK and THUD. "And it doesn't seem friendly"

"that's for sure," Knuckles said looking around "Tails lets get out of sight." I looked at him and cocked my head to one side. Knuckles running from I fight? This was new. He noticed my confusion and sighed. "I don't know what it is, I don't know what it can do and, as you pointed out earlier I've been doing quit a lot of digging today." I nodded. That sounded like a good reason to get out of the way. So with the usual flick and swirl of my tails I was off. I rose maybe 30 feet into the air before setting down in the upper branches of a tree. I could see the whole clearing from here but someone on the ground wouldn't be able to see me. I spotted Knuckles crouched behind some boulders. Good he should be safe there.

The wiring sound started again and one of the trees toppled into the clearing. From behind it came a E-1000 model eggbot. Just one eggbot? That wouldn't be a problem. Knuckles obviously thought the same thing, he was starting to get up out of his hiding place when suddenly he dropped to the ground again. Why did he do that I wondered. It wasn't long before I got my answer, and almost without a sound more E-1000s emerged from the jungle. Mostly soundless because when a tree got in the way of one of the bots it wouldn't move and go around. It would lash out with its clawed arm and the tree would fall and the E-1000 would step over it. They where keeping in a line, sure some where ahead of others but they all moved in the same direction. It reminded me of a search party. They each had a strip of ground to cover and they where doing exactly that. Eggman had them looking for something and they intended to find it. THE emerald! They must be looking for the emerald; why else would they be here?

The bots continued to move across the clearing. As the leading edge of the line neared Knuckles hideaway I could see him getting ready for a fight. I stood up on the branch, when they found Knuckles I would be ready to get the 'drop' on them. Laughing at my own lame joke I got ready to jump from the tree.

That's when something strange happened. One of the bots stopped and, seeing this, the others stopped too. I could hear muffled voices and static coming from the robot that had stopped. It took me a second to realize that it was talking to another bot over a radio. I couldn't make out what they were saying, but a caught a few words, target, confirmed sighting, coordinates, 12, require back up for pursuit. That was all I got. The robot with the radio thin announced in a loud yet still emotionless voice.

"all units, target has been sighted move in and secure." And with that the E-1000s abandoned there careful search and took to hovering off the ground. They sped away in full pursuit mode and thankfully no longer searching the area they failed to see the echidna pressed to the ground between two large rocks as they passed over.

Knuckles waited about a minute after the botniks had left before emerging from hiding. "Tails? Where did you go?" I didn't waste any time getting down from the tree, only putting enough spin in my tails to slow my descent. Knuckles looked like he had seen a ghost.

"Knuckles, what's-going -on-did-they-find-it-did-they-find the emerald…" I trailed off out of breath. He shook his head.

"the emerald is still here." He stated in a shaky voice.

"Well then wh…"

"they weren't looking for the emerald Tails." He cut me off. I opened my mouth to ask more questions, but Knuckles beat me to it. "according to the bot on the radio they where looking for, and found…. You."

-----------------------------------------------(A.N.)--------------------------------------------------

first off I would like to apologize to Katy and mew3692002 you guys reviewed and I love you for it. I would also like to apologize for the lateness of this chapter, things have been hectic I went to a wedding and a funeral this week both within 3 days which was Saturday. I still need fan characters and ask you to send them. I have no trivia question because last chapter's has yet to get a decent response. See you next time.


	4. Chapter 4

DISCLAMER: I do not own any of Sega's characters nor do I pay rent, but that has nothing to do with this.

----------------------------------------(Reviews)----------------------------------

Rabid RENThead: yes I know who you are, and I'm glad you like the story.

-----------------------------------------(A.N.)-----------------------------------------

WL: well Tails that was your firs chapter.

Tails: that one sucked compared to the last two

WL: …

Mal: oh no…

WL: I LIKED THAT ONE! ;;

Mal: great Tails, just great! You made the author cry.

Tails: I didn't mean to!

Mal:sigh I guess I'll just have to start us off. Here is the story.

------------------------------------------(Family)------------------------------------

just outside the mystic jungle: Mal's POV

It was noon, It was hot, and I still and to walk through a rainforest. I was standing atop a low ridge over looking the jungle. To my left the ridge rose sharply into a rocky wall that made up just over a forth of the jungles border. To my left the trail, and it was a trail now, made its way down the trail in a set of switchbacks. Directly in front of me over the tops of the trees, I could see the city. As I stared at station square my thoughts drift to the one place I didn't want them to go, but looking at that city I couldn't help it. I remembered the real reason I hated cities. I thought of my brother.

Of course he wasn't really my brother, but he might as well have been. I had known him since I was three. We grew up together at an orphanage called the plantation boarding house, in South fork a city to the southwest. We called it the plant, everyone did and when I asked why one of the older boys laughed and said "its because its like a factory they put us in and expect to get perfect little kids back." It didn't work that way. The plant being a government facility and all was terribly under funded, and wile living there was comfortable, there were only 3 permanent workers not including chowder the cook. Needles to say with close to a hundred kids ages 2 – 10 everyone did pretty much what they wanted when ever they wanted and for some of the more violent that meant pounding on anyone they considered a easy target. And since I was… different it was usually me, and usually when no one was there to see it. Until one day…

/_flashback/_

" _I don't get it, what did I do wrong?" I asked in a whimper._

"_**You** didn't do anything, your parents did." Said a dark brown bulldog leaning over me. I just stared at him with the one eye I could still see out of in confusion. My parents?_

"_wha..?" it was the best comeback I had at the moment._

"_they gave birth to a freak like you." Said a red hedgehog who played the roll of lackey to the bulldog. I did the only thing I could do the only thing that any three year old can do in those situations. I started to cry._

_I could fell the tears in my eyes and began to sob uncontrollably "aww is the little baby going to go cry to his mommy? Oh that's right, you don't have one!" I climbed slowly to my feet, I was shakeing my fists clinched at my sides I was mad now and not thinking clearly._

"_AT LEAST MINE DIDN'T LEAVE ME HERE ON PURPOSE!" It was the wrong thing to say and I knew it as soon as it was out of my mouth. The bulldog's eyes narrowed and swung at me. I yelped as it connected and fell backward. The two bullies closed in on me and trying to get my breath back I knew I was a goner. _

"_Leave the fox alone Bruce" my attackers spun to face the owner of the voice. _

"_This is between me and the freak, so buzz off." Bruce the bulldog snarled. In the gap between him and his hedgehog friend I could see the guy who had spoke up for me. He was a white swallow wearing a steel gray hat and gloves. I had seen him before, always off by himself reading a book or something. From the look on his face he wasn't buying the line a bout it being personal and sure enough._

" _If its between you and the kid then why is he here?" he jabbed a finger at red._

_Bruce was pissed now. "Fine you wanna know what's going on? I'll tell you. Were going to pound him to a pulp, and you too if you don't scram!" the swallow looked at me and in desperation I silently mouthed 'help me'. He nodded and Bruce, taking this as an answer to his threat started to gloat._

"_yeah that's what I thought now blow off before I…" _

_THWACK_

_The swallow hit him with a back hand slap so hard he went reeling. And before he could get his balance he tripped and hit his head on a rock with a dull thump. Bruce was out cold. Red took one look at him and high tailed it out of there. Laughing at Red's retreat he walked over to me and held out his hand "you ok?"_

_I smiled weakly "I think so." I said taking his hand getting to my feet. "thanks." _

"_No problem" _

_A long silence followed and I could tell that there was something he wanted to ask, and after a few minutes he did._

"_So… um why where they picking on you, anyway?" he asked, and I cringed _

"_Because, I'm a freak" I said in a whisper. This was the part where he would realize how weird I was and leave, they all did. _

"_look kid, just because those jerks called you a freak doesn't mean that you are one." He said_

"_But its true! There right I an a free." I said almost at a yell. He opened his mouth to say something else, but I cut him off with a sigh. "Just look at me…" I turned around and showed him not one but two tails. Looking over my shoulder I saw that expression of shock that everyone got the first time they saw my tails. "See I am a freak." I said it like it was a fact but I couldn't stop my voice from trembling. _

" _ok I admit that's not something you see every day," he muttered "but it still doesn't make you a freak." I smiled at that. He seemed to think for a few seconds then… "my names Slide, Slide the swallow. If anyone gives you trouble, you come to me ok?" he said and started to walk away._

"_Ok I'll do that" I said as I watched him leave. There he goes just like every one else. I sighed. I had hoped after that line about me not being a freak that he might still want to be my friend. I pressed my ears flat against my head and felt the tears start to come back. That's when he stopped, turned and looked back at me, and said four words that would change my life. _

"_Well? Are you coming?" those four words meant the world to me. Even after seeing my tails he still wanted to be around me. _

"_SURE!" I yelled and ran to catch up. He started walking again and I slowed to a walk next to him. We continued to walk side by side for awhile then he looked over at me._

"_You got a name kid?" he asked_

"_Malcolm Phunction." I replied happily. He burst out laughing. "What?" I asked confused._

"_I get it!" He cried still laughing "Malfunction!" I started laughing to, I hadn't thought of that. "Stick with me Mal, and…" he trailed off. "Just stick with me."_

_/end flashback/_

And so I stuck with him through out my time at the plant. At first I was nervous around him. Afraid that he would get annoyed by having someone 6 years younger then him follow him everywhere. My fears where unfounded he seemed to enjoy the company and taught me every thing from math to how to hotwire a car. (I still don't know how he picked that one up) we quickly became inseparable, if you found one of us the other was never far away. We even managed to blackmail, bribe, or otherwise talk are way into becoming room mates. I still remember laying on the top bunk hours after lights out just talking to Slide. More often then not our conversations drifted to the one thing we didn't have, families.

We talked about what we remember about our families. Neither of us could remember much just vague details, a mother's smile, a deep jolly laugh, a car trip. It wasn't much but it was all we had. It was one of these talks when we were wondering what it would be like to have a family that I asked that question

_/flashback/_

"_Slide?"_

"_Yeah?"_

"_Are we brothers?"_

" _We might as well be we spend so much time together"_

_Silence_

"_Slide?"_

"_hmm?"_

"_Thanks I needed a brother."_

_/end flashback/_

after that he started referring to me as his little brother. It confused the hell out of the plant management and potential parents looking to adopt alike. I didn't find out tell later that Slide had turned down three different families because they wouldn't or couldn't take me too. And so life continued as it always had, eat, sleep, get into a fight, not that Slide ever let me fight he was too protective of me for that instead he taught me how to get out of fights. How humor in the face of insults could confuse people enough to let you get away, the use of snappy come backs to trick them into doing something stupid, and if all else failed he would hold them off wile I ran. I hated running away it made me feel like a coward, but the one time I stayed to help in a fight Slide chewed me out for an hour. Never again did I stay for the fight.

In retrospect running wasn't all that easy ether. Slide couldn't always keep all of the bullies pined down, and then they would come after me. None of them ever caught me though, it wasn't that I was faster then them, was just better at avoiding things. My tails surprisingly enough gave me a huge advantage, using them I could pretty much balance on anything and so running along the tops of walls or grinding down a banister I could usually lose my larger and clumsier pursuers. After such fights Slide and I would meet back up in our room were I would take care of whatever cuts or bruises he had gotten during the fight.

When he turned 16, which made him legally an adult by mobian standards, he got kicked out of the plant to fend for himself. When he left, I left with him. I don't think anyone even noticed. Nothing changed when we left the plant. Slide got a job at a local bar and the owner let us stay in a small apartment upstairs. My tails still got me unwanted attention though now it was mainly from angry drunks from the bar, they rarely actually tried anything tough. And when they did… well lets just say drunks don't corner very well. We had food shelter and a steady income, life was good. It was the happiest time in my life, but it wouldn't last.

_/flashback/_

_It was just after closing time, Slide was out running errands, and I was seated at the bar having a chat with owner and bartender Rusty Aldridge. Rusty was a nice guy and being a human couldn't see anything wrong with me having two tails. I'm sure he wondered about it but he never said anything. He was telling me about a conversation he had with one of the customers that night when from be hind me came the sound of the door chime and several voices._

"_I'm sorry boys but we just closed." Rusty said, a tad bit nervous without Slide around to act as bouncer. "you'll just have to come back tomorrow"_

"_hey man all we want is a drink!" I knew that voice it was one that after he left the plant I had hoped never to hear again. It was Bruce. I started to wag my tails it was a nervous habit of mine and unfortunately it attracted the attention of one of Bruce's gang._

"_HEY! Look at that, the kit has tails!" it wasn't the most coherent statement ever but it worked. I could feel every eye in the room turn to look at me._

"_well if it isn't the little freak." Oh shit, he had recognized me. That could mean trouble. Putting on a fake smile I turned around to look at him a rested one arm on the counter. _

"_Hiya Bruce!" I said as cheerfully as I could manage. "Its been awhile." He had a small following with him. Red was there, but that was the only face I knew, the others, four humans and a dark blue rabbit girl, looked confused. _

_Rusty raised an eyebrow at me. "you know these guys Mal?" I nodded. "well a friend of Mal's is friend of mine, hold on a second and I'll get you something." I saw Red's eyes light up at that._

"_who said we where friends?" Bruce said coldly. I sighed well there's that plan down the drain. Red scowled at Bruce's back. _

"_aw come on Bruce the kids not bad, He was gonna get us drinks!" that was Red. I felt a moment of gratitude towards the hedgehog_

"_Shut it!" Bruce snapped at him. _

"_What do you want Bruce?" I asked. He grinned._

"_Well I was hoping to get a few beers in me but I guess I'll just have to settle an old score first." Bruce said and cracked his knuckles. I tensed and pulled my feet up so they where resting on the top wrung of the barstool. I didn't like where this was going._

_Bruce noticed my movement and smiled "Not so tuff without Slide around to back you up are you? You two tailed freak." I flattened my ears and sighed. Being called a freak didn't really bother me anymore, but it didn't look like I was going to be able to talk him out of a fight. "What's the matter freak no swallow to go running to this time?"_

_I decided that I should at least get at least some fun out of this and looking right at him I said "No I had just hoped you had gotten over this fixation you've got with my tails, you know it would never work out between us." Bruce sputtered, and I heard at leas two of the guys be hind him stifle laughter. Red didn't bother he was grinning openly. _

"_**That's it you little freak**!" he yelled "Dave, Tyler, get him." Two of the humans moved slowly toward the bar grinning. I looked at Rusty and he nodded, he would be okay._

"_Go on kid, get out of here, I'll tell your brother." I gave him a quick smile and turned back to my would be attackers._

_One laughed and pulled out a knife. "your not going anywhere." He lunged at me._

_Pushing off the top wrung of the stool I jumped high into the air, coming down hands first on knife boys head and flipped over him. I hit the ground running and heard the thud as he lost his balance and fell behind me. Ok now all I had to do was get passed the five between me and the door. I dropped and rolled directly between the legs of a very surprised looking Red, and took of out of the bar and down the street. I heard cries of "don't just stand there get him!" followed by foot steps._

_It wasn't long before the rabbit, Red, and I where a ways ahead of the others. I had been chased by red before, he was fast, fast enough that he was gaining on me, but he couldn't stop to save his life. Coming to a street corner I saw my chance. A car parked in the entrance to an ally way so that the font stuck out into the side walk. Using a fire hydrant for a footstep a vaulted onto the car and jumped down the other side still running. _

_Clang! Red hadn't stopped in time and had hit the car. The rabbit however cleared the car entirely in one jump. In an attempt to lose her I turned down the next side street and again into an ally way. It didn't work; the ally I had run down was a dead end._

_A shadow fell across the brick wall and I looked around. The rabbit stood in the street in front of the ally breathing hard. She grinned at me and looked back the way we had come. "HEY! RED! Over here, I found him!" a few moments later the entry to the ally was crowded by Red, Bruce and company. I backed up tell I felt the wall. I was wildly looking for a way out. There! Along one side of the ally was a large steel dumpster the ladder for the fire escape above it was out and close to the ground. I could use that, but it was closer to Bruce's gang. If I made a brake for it they would get there first. I was starting to panic now. I looked to the other side of the ally. There was a door, no good, it would be locked._

_There was a clatter from the mouth of the ally, everyone turned to look, and there out on the street, a full bag of groceries at his feet, was Slide. "What's this Bruce, still picking on the kid after all these years?" _

"_Slide." Bruce's voice was cold. He walked toward my brother. Every one was staring at them. Realizing that no one was paying any attention to me, I made a beeline for the fire escape, still running I grabbed the bottom wrung of the ladder and swung myself onto the lid of the dumpster. I landed with a clang and ran along the top of the dumpster and made a flying leap to the ground. I landed just short of the street and as I rounded the corner I heard Bruce shout. "Red, Bell doesn't let the Freak get away." Then my brother._

"_Oh no you don't!" there was a smacking sound and only one set of foot steps following me. I didn't look back to see who it was, the steps where getting closer and that meant Red. I was almost back to the bar when I felt a hand on my shoulder holding me back._

_I tried to shake it off but Read grabbed my arm and spun me around to face him. _

"_GOTCHA, you little…" he was cut off by a gun shot from the way we had come. Red let go of my wrist and we both stood there looking back towards the ally. We looked at each other and took of running back the way we came. Red and I rounded the last corner at the same time and came to a abrupt halt we both stared. There on the ground lay Slide. His white feathers stained red. There was a hole in his chest surrounded buy broken feathers and blood. He wasn't moving, and over him was Bruce. He was putting something back inside his jacket and I knew it was a gun. I just stood there staring in shock. Red snapped me out of it. "MY GOD BRUCE, YOU **SHOT **HIM?" Bruce looked up and saw me._

"_great, now the freak knows I did it!" I didn't wait around to see what happened next. I ran. I ran faster and harder then I ever have in my life before or since. I was vaguely aware of Red shouting in the distance and of the sound of footfalls behind me. I didn't care, I kept running. I didn't stop when they stopped following me, I didn't stop when I reached the edge of the city. I just kept running._

_/end flashback/_

Two years later and looking at that that city in the distance I could still feel the pain and fear of that night. I felt a tear in my eyes and realized I had been crying. Blinking away the tears I moved away from the ledge that I had been standing on for who knows how long. I didn't need this right now, right now I needed food. If I wanted to eat I would have to go into Station Square weather I wanted to or not. I loved my brother, and I would never forget him. When I was in the city it was different every time I saw a dark ally or a rundown bar the memories of that night would come rushing back to me. As I started down the trial into the trees below, I wondered what kind of work I could find. Hopefully I'd get a job at a repair shop or garage. I liked working on cars and the like, it was something I had picked up from Slide. with fond memories of my brother going through my head once more, I walked underneath the first trees and crossed the border into the mystic jungle. I didn't realize it but I was smiling.

------------------------------------------(A.N.)---------------------------------------------

HOLY CA**R**P THAT WAS LONG! 8 pag**e**s! First off I would like to apologize for not only gi**v**ing Mal two ta**i**ls but also for having a chapt**e**r completely dedicated to the back-story of my OC. As you shall see both are completely plot important. No**w** that I have bee**n** properly apol**o**getic I condemn you lazy bums for your lack of support. I was forced to make up additional OC characters on my o**w**n. FOR SHAME …. Ok I'm done now. You may continue your reading of other stories.


	5. Chapter 5

DISCLAMER: I own not a single Sega character and most likely never will.

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WL: …and that is why we are in your Airplane.

Tails: That story had absolutely nothing to do with the Tornado II, you know that right?

Mal: Really? I thought my back-story explained everything. Oh well I guess we just have to keep telling the story

Tails:…

WL: I accept your stunned silence for the agreement I want it to be. ON WITH THE SHOW!

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Mystic jungle: Mal's POV 

Well this isn't that bad. I had expected the rain forest surrounding the mystic ruins to be oppressively hot and humid. It wasn't. It was actually quite cool and well shaded down here under the leafs and branches of the towering trees. I looked up and could just make out the sky, patches of blue amid the ever present green. Here and there a beam or two of sunlight could be seen as the light played off the dust in the air, lighting up the Forrest floor. A few feet away from the path a clear stream flowed through the underbrush. _This place is beautiful. _I took another bite of hardened French bred. Up ahead the path crossed through the stream. If I remembered the map right that meant I only had two or three more hours of walking before I arrived at the train station that would take me into station square.

After wading through the waist deep water I set my bag on the ground and, dropping to all fours shook the water out of my fur, drops flying in all directions. Off the path, about a yard or two into the under brush something moved. It made me jump but it didn't worry me that much, it was probably just some animal that I had sprayed with water. Poor thing, I had probably woken it up. _Ah well what's done is done. _I picked up my bag and started walking. I hadn't gone more then a few feet when I heard a rustling and from the corner of my eye there was a flash of red and white. _It's following me! _I kept walking, ears at full perk to see if I could hear it again. I did, on the other side of the path this time, which meant there, had to be more then one. Now I was nervous, I was pretty sure I was getting stalked by ether a pack of animals or gang of bandits. There was another sound, this time the thud of metal on wood. _That rules out wild animals._ I slowed to a stop and tightened the strap on my pack. I stood turning slowly in a circle, this wasn't the first time someone had tried to mug me and wouldn't be the last. The trick is not to panic and run, they might have a guy or two laying in wait up the trail. Stay still, make them come to you, when there out in the open and you can see where all of them are _then_ you take off like a bat out' a hell and hope they don't catch you.

Still turning I scanned the forest to either side of the trail. Silently I wished that whoever was following me would hurry up and show themselves, I hated the waiting. This had happened before and as always I was scared out of my mind. My legs are shaky and I can and I know it, I fight the urge to run. If I ran now I might run smack into the very people I was running from. I had learned that the hard way.

Wile I don't remember exactly what happened after that; the bruises, cuts, and distinct lack of personal items told me it was not something I wanted to go through again. So I stood my ground and waited. Finely after what seemed like an eternity of slowly turning in place there was movement behind me. It was just up the trail and to the left. Instinctively I turned to face the sound. All I could see was a slightly rounded shadow, large and missing. Its foot steps made thuds and crunching noises. Whoever, no whatever this was must weigh a ton.

It stepped out onto the trail and into the light. I felt my jaw drop and I stared, fear forgotten at the 5 foot red and white figure in front of me. It was a robot! I had a vague notion that I had seen it somewhere before but for the life of me I couldn't remember where. Not that I was trying that hard. I was much more interested in trying to figure out how it worked. I had almost a physical urge to pull it apart and take a look. I was in the middle of wondering if I would even understand how it worked if I did get the chance when it spoke.

"New subject acquired" I jumped startled out of my thoughts on how to get it to let me take a look inside. "Subject is a male mobius vulpi, 8 to 14 years of age. Subject is 2.73 feet in height and estimated 82 lb." My tails twitched in annoyance at being looked over like a display item.

"Presence of multiple tales confirmed. Target parameters matched. Subject identified as Miles 'Tails' Prower. Requesting orders." All I could think was, _Tails? Who's Tails?_

With out thinking I started to correct it. "uhh I'm not T..." but was cut off by the bot.

"Orders: detain" it raised an arm and for the first time I noticed that it ended in a sleek looking gun barrel.

Let's get this strait. I don't like guns. I'm not terrified of them but after what happened to Slide; well… let's just say I don't think all that straight when guns are involved.

"Submit for capture or I will be forced to take drastic measures."

There was another set of clanking foot steps and robot came out on the left side of the path just behind the first. The bot that was pointing a gun at me turned slightly to look, and I did what was probably the stupidest thing I could have. I ducked under the gun and blew past both egg shaped robots and ran as fast as I could toward the mystic ruins and station square. About three seconds later a blast of red-yellow light flew past, just to the left of my head and burned its way into a tree trunk 20 feet away, and was immediately followed by more.

"HOLY CARP!" that was about the time I decided that running in a straight line was NOT in my best interest. I started jukeing to one side or the other at random. Suddenly the shooting stopped and a dull roar filled the air. Risking a look back I saw why. The machines had pulled there legs up in front of them and where barreling along just above ground level, propelled forward by rockets on there backs. They where gaining and fast. OK, so I couldn't out run them but maybe I could out maneuver them. I looked desperately for anything that could help me out of the fix I was in. there! A low hanging branch just above head height, I could use that. I made a b-line for the branch. It seemed to take forever, the scream of engines got louder, by the time I was almost to the branch it sounded like they where right behind me. Before I could think about it I looked back too see the first bot less than three feet from me. I looked back around in time to see. Yet another robot emerges from the forest to stand directly in front of me. It seemed as surprised to see me as I was to see it. I looked, saw the branch was less than a foot away, and as the bot in front of me raised its gun I leaped. I caught hold of the branch and let my momentum carry me around and up into the tree. The first bot zoomed past me and tried to turn. Its momentum was much less helpful, causing it to slide into the newly arrived bot number 3. Number 3's chassis crumpled like tin foil and both robos went down with a crunch and shower of sparks. The remaining robot made the turn and came back at me.

Thinking of its inability to turn fast I took off into the jungle, jumping from tree to tree. My mechanical shadow followed. Moving along underneath me it couldn't quite catch up to me. The trees where preventing it from reaching top speed. In an attempt to lose it I changed directions at random, looking back every minute or so to see if it was still behind me. After one such glance I turned back around ready to leap to another tree, and realized there wasn't one. I hit the ground hard and tucked into a roll to absorb the impact. I rolled over hard dirt and rocks and into something solid that made a clang. Quickly I climbed to my feet and looked around, trying to figure out what I had run into and where I was now. Then I stopped and stared, I was back on the path, the wreckage of the robots that had run into each other had been what stopped my roll. I was back where I started.

Some how I had managed to go around in a complete circle. Then wile I was still trying to figure out how I got turned around the robot that had been chasing me through the jungle burst from the trees 50 yards down the path near the stream. It stopped and looked around, and immediately saw me still standing there like an idiot. It turned towards me and I remembered that I should be running. I took off, aiming for a vine covered gap between two trees. Engines humming to life, the bot speed after me.

Reaching the vines I pushed through them… and slammed into the rock wall behind them at a run. I stumbled back through the vines and recovered my feet in time to see the robot coming straight at me. I was backed into a corner the only way out was to some how get past the charging robo. It was close now, maybe 20 feet away, my lead having been eaten up by my encounter with the rock.

The rock! That was it! As the robot neared me, raising its arms in anticipation for the catch, I went limp. I fell to the ground (in a vary uncomfortable position) and a second later I felt the heat of the bots rockets pass over me, and then suddenly following a crunch and grown of metal and rock another scorching blast and a shower of small screws and shards of steel as the bot exploded. One piece of metal sliced its way into my shoulder and I yelped in pain. After the ringing in my ears died down I slowly climbed to my feet, left hand pressed tight to the hole in my right shoulder. I turned to look at the damage; most of the vines had been ripped out when the bot flew through them. The bot its self was now little more then a pile of burnt circuits and scrap metal at the foot of the rock wall. And in those bushes… and over by that tree. I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. It was over and suddenly, the adrenalin rush leaving me, I was very, VERY tired

I took one last look at what was left of the bot and, hand still pressed to my shoulder I turned to resume my slow trek toward the city and froze. There behind me was another bot. This one was bright orange and both taller and thinner than the others. But what caught my attention was the long, thin pole extending from its wrist. It had small sparks and arcs of electricity dancing along it, and it was humming. Never a good sign. The robot drew back its arm to swing the pole. I didn't even think of running I was too tired. I flattened my ears and all I had time to do as the bot swung was let out a exasperated "awww, son of a bi-"

The rod connected with my chest, the wind was knocked out of me and there was this crackling noise. When I could breath again I realized I had been thrown back into the rock wall and was sprawled in the wreckage of the smaller bot. The next thing I realized was that I hurt. I felt as if my whole body was cramping up, every muscle in it twitching from the force of the shock. I saw the robot move over me and look down. The world went black.

Same place, 20min. later: knuckles POV 

"are you sure they where talking about me?" tails called over his shoulder to me"

"Yes, yes, A THOUSEND TIMES YES!" ever since our encounter with the E-1000s, tails hadn't stopped asking me questions about what I had heard. It was getting annoying. We were walking in the direction the Es had gone in hopes of trying to figure out how they had supposedly 'captured' when he was obviously right there in front of me. We had been walking for maybe half an hour, and hadn't seen a badnick in at least 10 minuets. Whatever they had been doing they where done now, but maybe fox boy and I could figure out what the doctor was up to.

"Hey Knux?" I groaned he it came, another question. "What do you think they wan…" he pushed his way past an odd fern like plant. "they wan… want…" he trailed off. _finally some quiet._ I immediately regretted thinking it, if it wasn't for tails I probably wouldn't have been there and my island would be gone as sure as the Lava Reef was hot. Tails hadn't moved since he had stopped talking, he was just standing there starring at something.

"You find something?" I called up to him. He just nodded. I hurried forward to see what was up, and saw the oddest thing. Two destroyed E-1000s, now that's not very unusual in and of it, but these seemed to have tried to fly THROUGH each other.

"What in the world?" Tails nodded and pointed up the trail.

"There's another one up there."

I turned to look and saw what looked like a kamikaze attempt at starting a forest fire. The E-1000 had passed through a clump of low hanging vines, ripping out most and setting fire to the rest, and smashed headlong into a rock wall. The area around where it had hit was blackened and charred.

There was a clank of metal on metal from behind me and I turned to see Tails digging through what was left of the robots that had run into each other. "What are you doing?" Tails looked up.

"I'm going to see if I can get at its electronically erasable programmable read only memory." I just stared at the kit.

"Its _what?_" Tails didn't even look up as he answered.

"If you want memory that will not be changed or cant be written to that often, use EEPROM. Its much faster than a hard drive, designed to be read from, not written to, as opposed to just ROM, which you have to get pre-made with the software built into it,

and can't change it if you need to." He gave a grunt as he ripped open a dented panel, then continued.

"Use it for bios and low level data like our friend here's memory." He held up the head of a badnick.

"Soooo… that means what exactly?" every time Tails started in on an explanation my head started to hurt.

The young fox sighed. "I'm going to take this." He hefted the head. "Back to my shop, and find out what egg head was up to here." Tails cocked his head to the side and said: "you know we should really get all of them. He gestured behind me with a robotic arm. Go see if you can find that ones head wile I get this one off." I started to argue but Tails was already hard at work prying the head off of the other E-1000. Muttering I walked up the small incline to the wreckage of the last badnick. As I got closer I could see that this one was a lot worse off from the others. I don't think it had more than 3 parts still together in any one place.

After about a minuet of looking I found the head. I picked it up and stopped dead, there next to the head was a reddish brown stain. Blood. And just beyond it, in the charred circle of ground from the explosion, there was I silhouette of a person. It looked like they had gotten hit by the blast. For the first time I started to look around the area at the ground. In no time at all I had found what I was looking for: foot prints. There where two sets of them.

One was the thick steel grip deck of a badnick. (For those of you that don't know steel grip deck is that metal pattern that has the alternating diagonal demand shapes) the other was lighter and looked like an ordinary kid's sneaker. Where they met the sneakers disappeared and then a few feet away there was a scuff mark on the ash covering the rock wall. Below it there was a trail in the debris and dirt where something had been dragged. Three or four yards later both the drag-trail and the eggbot's foot prints disappeared.

"HEY, KNUCKELS!" Tails voice made me jump. "Are you going to stare at the ground all day or do you wanna to see what these fine metallic fellows where up to?"

I looked at him and then back at the outline in the ash. "yeah, I'm coming" Tails moved off and I started to follow him still looking back at that odd reverse shadow. Now I really wanted to see what those robots had to show for them selves. That outline had been of a fox. A fox with two tails.

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heh I haven't updated in forever but as no ones reviewed yelling at me to do so yet I figure I'm ok. I beg you all an bended knee to review annnd… yeah that's about it see ya!


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